As a parent of school-age children, this time of year has me thinking about preparing them for the year ahead. Most of us, whether we have kids in school or not, can relate to wanting to make sure someone under our care has everything they need: all the right school supplies, healthy lunches, and an environment in which to learn and get the most out of the instruction they are receiving. It’s appropriate given the responsibility we have for someone else that we love them and want to see them succeed.
So then the question I have is, do we set ourselves up for the same success?
Do we get the most out of what we do because of our understanding of the implications our actions have on our future health and happiness?
This is our life, folks, the only one we get, and we have to be responsible to ourselves like we are to those about whom we care the most.
- Do you eat for health or for sport?
- Do you sleep for your body to recover or to get on to the next day?
- Do you exercise to check the box or to actually get stronger, move more, live better and add vitality to your life?
When describing how our approach to programming and coaching exercise at Thrive allows us to get people to feel and move better, I often talk about how our understanding of physiology and posture helps us create a “recipe” for better movement and results. I used the following analogy recently: It’s like hiding veggies in a sauce in your kids’ meals so they get more of what we know they need.
We build strategies into what may seem otherwise like conventional exercises that aren’t always seen, but make for more productive workouts.
Our kids only know they’re eating something that tastes good without realizing it’s actually “good for them” as well. We have to have the same influence over ourselves that we are trying to have with our kids and loved ones.
We need to get more out of ourselves and expect the results of our efforts to pay dividends beyond just getting it done.
